The invention relates to aircraft passenger cabin interiors having airflow panels that are easily installed and removed from the aircraft using adaptable and positive attachment means which extend between the floor and sidewall along both sides of the cabin. The air flow panel assemblies have air grilles for directing return air flow to the lower lobe. The airflow panel assemblies allow rapid flow of air in the event of aircraft rapid decompression.
Exemplary prior art includes:
U.S. Pat. No. 5,085,017 to Hararat-Tehrani showing a decompression panel being held in place by frangible mounting elements that break away in response to decompression loading. The breaking away occurs at a point on each mounting element where material has been removed to provide a weak spot.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,069,401 to Shepherd et al. shows a fabric blowout panel that is hinged by the fabric along the upper edge and held into a U-shaped frame on the other three edges by friction due to bolting together of the frame sides.
None of the preceding prior art references show attachment means having a diamond-shape knurling engagement with mating panel clip providing a positive latch.
Commercial aircraft interiors have a number of air grille panels that extend between the floor and sidewall panel in an end-to-end manner running along both sides of the aircraft. The panels have air grilles for return air flow passage without conditioned air migration in the cabin and compound grille openings that allow rapid flow of air in the event of aircraft decompression.
It is important that the air grille panels have the capability to be installed or removed while passenger seats are installed. Behind the air grilles are airplane system components needing occasional repair or maintenance access. Air grilles are also periodically removed from the aircraft for cleaning.
It is highly desirable to be able to adjust the location of air grilles to aesthetically align them with sidewall panels prior to permanent fastening or latching. A further requirement is to have air grille panels secured to their supports without occurrence of any transposition during any flight conditions.
In many commercial passenger aircraft the air grille panels have fasteners to secure the ends into the rigid support brackets coupled to the body structures behind the panels while the upper and lower edges are unrestrained. In this means of attachment, fastener heads are usually exposed and exact lengths of grille panels are very meaningful to avoid misfits.
Various other ways of securing air grilles to capture the upper edge behind sidewall panels have diverse means of attaching the bottom edge onto the floor angle such as using clips, or quarter-turn latch systems, or swivel-clamping systems. This manner of captured panel upper edge and lower releasable latching means needs considerable space between the floor angle and passenger seat legs for preparatory motions to engage the upper edge and then setting the lower edge to latching position. Air grille panels in these numerous ways of bottom latching have overlapping ends.
An aircraft interior air grille assembly comprised of three primary parts which when coupled onto the aircraft body structure on the floor and the interior sidewall panel will provide the air grille installation that is readily aligned and adjusted to the proper location. The first primary part is a molded thermoplastic air grille with molded features to provide easy positioning prior to positive latching. The second part is a releasable latch pawl that firmly holds the air grille assembly to the sidewall panel with a clockwise turn. The third part is a clip that holds the lower edge of the grille to the floor angle and another similar clip that interlocks the overlapping ends of the grille to the adjacent air grille. Assembly of these two basic parts to the grille panel does not need any other auxiliary hardware. A further advantage is the lack of exposed fasteners. The latch pawls are hidden and can be latched or released through access holes. A further advantage is the ability to assemble all components without any tool. The standard size air grille has a unique pattern that allows trimming to the desired sizes without partially cutting through grille areas thereby producing smaller air grilles without the expense of multiple numbers of injection molded tools.